2.-- The economic calendar in the U.S. Friday includes the nonfarm payrolls report for January at 8:30 a.m. EST, and consumer credit for December at 3 p.m.

3.-- U.S. stocks on Thursday rose as jobless claims came in lower than expected, suggesting the labor situation was improving despite recent data weakness in other sectors. The S&P 500 closed up 1.24% to 1,773.43, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.22% -- its first close up 1% this year -- to 15,628.46. The Nasdaq increased 1.14% to 4,057.12.

Cook said Apple was "surprised" by the 8% decline in its shares on Jan. 28, the day after it reported lower iPhone sales than projected and warned that revenue in the current quarter might decline from the same period a year ago, the Journal reported. Cook said he wanted to be "aggressive" and "opportunistic."

With the latest purchases, Cook told the newspaper that Apple has repurchased more than $40 billion of its shares over the past 12 months. According to Cook, that's a record for any company over a similar span.

IBM appointed Goldman Sachs to sound out possible buyers for the business, according to people familiar with the matter, the FT reported. IBM is not wedded to the idea of selling and could also seek a partner with which to create a joint venture for its semiconductor operations, the people said. A value for the business could not be learned, according to the FT .

IBM shares rose 0.5% in early trading.

6.-- LinkedIn forecast on Thursday revenue for 2014 that fell short of analysts' estimates.

7.-- News Corp reported fiscal second-quarter profit on Thursday of $150 million, or 26 cents a share, down from $1.4 billion, or $2.42 a share, a year earlier, which included a $1.3 billion gain from an acquisition. Adjusted earnings were 31 cents a share; analysts were looking for 21 cents.